A powerful display of heartfelt Americana, raucous garage rock, and angsty punk, The Devil You Know is the excellent debut album from New York-based band St. Divine. The record masterfully threads uninhibited dual-vocal entrancement through heavy themes of grief, defiance, and visceral catharsis. It also takes inspiration from “authentic New York subculture” in conjuring “the energy of fast cars and dive bars, heartbreak, with a hint of hope for our tangled times,” per the band.
Kicking off the album in rousing form, “SPIT” is a strong declarative statement from the band. “I’ll take the odds, I’ll place my bet,” the dual-vocal stirrings from Judy Ann Nock and Will Croxton exude, arriving thereafter into a title-touting ardor. Themes of self-power seem to emanate within the punk-friendly production, encouraging to simply “spit!” when confronted with something unsettling or sinister, rather than succumbing to conformity.
Coming next, “The Devil That You Know” is also among the album’s many highlights. It’s a deeply personal track, written by Nock and inspired by a dark period almost five years ago, when her husband took his life. “Let me lie in the bed I made,” the dual-vocal approach coexists with simmering guitar tones and a moody bass bustle; that line envelops in capturing survivor’s guilt following the suicide of a loved one, again capturing how the project is capable of infusing dark, personal themes within approachably stylish rock productions. “My husband David suffered from the mother of all mental illnesses; schizophrenia, paranoid type,” Nock says. “One of his symptoms was aural hallucinations and I wanted to try to understand how that might have felt for him, with many voices firing off all at once.”
The standout songwriting continues consistently throughout the album from there. Furthering themes of grief and traversing through personal tumult, “Wedding Ring” intrigues in its radio-dial initial feeling, maneuvering into a warming, triumphant rock sound in the “a man could…” duet-ing chorus, its ensuing “I know I should be getting over you” admissions being particularly melodic. Another standout, “Waltz With Me” consumes in the more hypnotic realm, weaving twanging slow-burn guitars amidst “let’s burn this house, ’til the flames go out” vocal catharsis, with that house likely representative of lingering emotional pain and wreckage. Elsewhere, “Took Our Love Down” charms in its dynamic guitar work, swelling from breezy hopes for salvation to a second-half burst of soaring enthrallment. Abundant with quality, personal songwriting, The Devil You Know is a fantastic full-length from St. Divine.
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“The Devil That You Know” and other tracks featured this month can be streamed on the updating Obscure Sound’s ‘Emerging Singles’ Spotify playlist.
